What’s with the Biker Thing?
In 2007 we took the Clearwater Motorcycle Riding Course together. We were both divorced and looking for adventure. As soon as the motorcycle endorsement was on our driver’s licenses, Jeff went out and bought his first of five bikes. (Just don’t tell his mother.) He found a motorcycle riding group that got together every Sunday and met a man named Doc P, a pediatrician who was helping to organize the Tampa area chapter of BACA, Bikers Against Child Abuse. Their mission statement says, “… to empower abused children to not be afraid of the world in which they live.” Over the last few years, BACA has become a huge part of our lives. We’ve dedicated 100% of our charitable time to this fantastic organization that truly puts the wellbeing of abused children first. We encourage you to check out their website, www.bacaworld.org.
Where Does Sailing Fit In?
We love sailing. Jeff sailed small boats as a child in summer camp, and I grew up sailing with my dad. Jeff never sailed as an adult, and I did not sail when I was married previously. When Jeff and I were dating, we went sailing on my dad’s Morgan 38. I had forgotten how much I loved sailing, and Jeff was hooked right away. When we got serious about possibly sailing as a lifestyle, we spent a week in the USVI and BVI with Blue Water Sailing School. We purchased our first boat Ru-Ach, a Leopard 48 through the Moorings Charter Program soon after. After the disaster of hurricane Irma where we lost her, we immediately purchased a new Leopard 45 who we named Wind Therapy. We spent five years with a boat in the Moorings program. Since we were not proficient sailors, and since we were still working, owning a boat this way enabled us to own the boat we wanted while learning to sail during our vacations. It totally prepared us for this journey so far. We know there is still a lot to learn, but our foundation is fantastic.
What About Your Family?
Jeff and I have four wonderful kids, a super son-in-law, an adorable grandson, and a beautiful granddaughter. We’re thankful for Wi-fi so that we can keep in touch while we’re gone.
Our plan is to see the kids and the rest of our family every other month, whether we fly home or we fly them to us. It’s been working out, so far. Although, adhering to this plan takes more planning than we’d originally bargained for. Finding marinas can be tough. And the only time we left Wind Therapy on a mooring ball while we flew home for a week gave us huge anxiety. “Everyone up here does it. She’ll be fine.” We were assured. And she was. I’ll have to admit that I did have a major sigh of relief when we saw her, though.
As for our grandchildren, we plan to have our grandson every summer for Camp Wind Therapy. Our granddaughter is too young right now for us to want her on the boat by ourselves. But we feel it’s so important for people, especially kids today, to unplug and truly see the world. We’re looking forward to teaching them how to sail, snorkel, drive the dinghy, and to fish (as soon as we learn how ourselves.)
Shameless Plug #1
Our daughter, Shaina, is a cosmetologist specializing in hair color and curly hair. But her real claim to fame is her permanent make-up business. She’s known as the Brow Boss. Check out her salon – J. Lee Salon Suites in Clearwater, FL. We’re so proud of you Shaina, making the world a more beautiful place every day. If you want to book an appointment, you can find her at [email protected].
Shameless Plug #2
Our son, Alec, is in a band called Nevertel. We’ve know these talented young men since they were in high school. Please check them out on Instagram and Facebook, and have a listen to their music on Spotify. By the way, Spotify likes them so much that they now have a Nevertel Play List! We’re so proud of them and can’t wait to see the wonderful things that are in store for the band.
Charitables
We wanted to keep a video diary of our journey, wherever it led. The diary was meant for us and for friends and family to see what we’re up to. The plan was never to monetize the YouTube channel. We love music and wanted free rein without commercials. Well, YouTube had plans of their own. They put commercials on our site anyway. How dare they! If someone is going to profit from our video diary, it might as well be us. Then we can decide what to do with the money.
So, we devised a plan. “Let’s monetize the channel and donate the money.” And that’s what we did.
The first dollars went for school supplies for the Black Point Primary School in the Exumas. Those kids are awesome, so friendly to everyone. We felt for them since it’s so hard for them to get school supplies. In November 2021 we got ahold of the principal who emailed us her wish list. We were able to buy everything on it, stock the boat, and we delivered paper, pencils, notebooks, etc. to the school on Christmas Eve. When we met the children a few months later, they were adorable and totally appreciative. We love those kids.
Then, dollars went to The Impossible Dream, an adaptive sailing catamaran built for people in wheelchairs and with other disabilities. This organization does such wonderful things for people, that we wanted to make our giving ongoing. At least for now. Here’s how you can help.
Visit www.theimpossibledream.org, donate $40 or more, and type “Wind Therapy” in the comments box on the donation form. They will forward us your contact information when they get the donation, and we’ll contact you for your shirt size and shipping information. Then we’ll send you a Wind Therapy SPF long-sleeve shirt!
Thank you for considering this organization. Let’s help keep The Impossible Dream afloat!